Hey TW! Let's see your knives!

Not a new knife but I decided to take apart a ZT0560BLK and flame the ti handle, clip and lock bar stabilizer. I really like the way it came out. Seems to change color in the sun/different lighting/angles. Clip seems to be a different grade of Ti, and only turned a bronze color with very light purple edges. Still cool tho.

 

Benson X

I like those grips on the Blur, I wish my Leek had them

Do you know if they make them to fit the Leek ?

If you are not sure it`s no problem, Im going by Rocky Mt Knifeworks in a few days, Im sure they can tell me

 

Got another zero tolerance in the mail today. ZT0560BW
Digging the blackwashed vintage look.

 

Got myself a cold steel trail hawk
And a bk9

 

Get the micarta scales for the BK. great knife, I just don't like the grips. Or better yet make your own out of micarta or wood.

 

I can't help but mod things, and the bk9 is high on my list to mod. First mod will be a coating strip. Then remove the thumb ramp and file new jumping for my thumb. I will then polish the hell out of it get as close to mirror finish as my impatience will allow then gun blue it. After that I am gonna have some some dark walnut grips made for it, possibly with either a black then white liner, a white liner, or a darker red color. Liners will most likely be colored G10

After all that I will have a nice leather sheath made for it

 

That should look great. That was my only complaint about the BK. The black baked on finish is really rough. Although, I let a buddy try it for pig hunting, and he said it slipped right in and hit the heart no problem.

 

the blackwash finish looks pretty sweet

 

I sanded the finish off the blade on my BK 14 as well. I left it on the handle though. Much better without.

 

lol, one good knife deserves another!

I really dig the Blackwash finish. I can't afford a ZT right now, but can't wait for the Blackwash Cryo II to be released. That's gonna be my all around "crap" knife.

The flaming looks great on the Titanium 560!

They don't make a Leek w/ Trac-Tec inserts, but it might be worth an email to Dave Anderson (KershawGuy): http://kershawguy.com/contact-me/

He lives near Kershaw/Kai and has a great selection of Kershaws along with many parts & components. He does some custom work as well, and it very fair (inexpensive) on cost.

Cold Steel is a great company...especially their Proof and More Proof DVDs. I got a kick out watching those guys "test" their products. I love my Cold Steel Recon-1 (original). Still waiting to get it back after having the serrated portion removed

The BKs are badass, tried & true knives. Post pics when you get them!

 

Thanks! I actually have all four
0560, 0560blk, 0560bw, and the brown 0561. I should get a group shot of them.
The 0561 gets carried pretty regularly, and it shows.

 

Paint stripper is the easiest way to take the coating off lol

Sanding would take forever lol

 

Just curious, but why strip the coating off of a knife? I really like the black coating on my mini grip

 

The mini grip has a much smoother coating than the bk9, they are very rough coating.....and I want to use gun blue on it lol

 

Gotcha, blueing would be interesting for sure! lol

 

I'm thinking about trying a rust bluing to get that deep dark rich color, I think that combining thy with walnut or cocobolo grips and a nice leather sheath would look really good

 

Yeah, that coating on the BKs are something else man. Thick black baked on wrinkle finish.

 

shit!! googling that knife now..thanks..

 

Yup. I'm thinking of doing some type of epoxy sealant on mine, either with the factory scales or with new ones. I wanted my Bk14 to be the perfect hunting knife, but I had to strip it apart to clean it after each deer I field dressed last season. I didn't consider this when purchasing but it's a real downside to having bolt on scales. Water, blood and grease get down into the bolt head & even under the scales. Great way to get a dirty, rusty knife.

 

That surely would have been easier. I took some 60 grit paper to it to get the most off, then put it on a buffing wheel to polish it up, so not a terrible amount of effort. I was surprised at how deep the machining marks are on the blade. Surely part of the reason that the finish hangs on so well.

Applied coatings, meaning coatings that aren't chemically part of the metal but are painted/applied over the metal, are really a liability. Short term they protect the metal, but they tend to flake/chip and may even trap moisture under them and help the knife rust. Plus they really add to the friction when splitting or cutting, and can make a knife a less efficient cutter. I'm a fan of keeping a knife clean and sharp and lightly oiled rather than coated with a paint or finish. Cold blue, as CE mentioned, is a great way to add a bit of chemical protection to a blade that could maybe rub off but will never flake or chip because it's part of the metal and not a coating. I keep mine clean and oiled with food grade oil so that I can whip it out and slice up an apple or do food duty in camp as needed.